Closure



March 3; 1936. M; A. PIXLEY 2,032,951

CLOSURE Filed Dec. 14, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Mzfion A. PIX/65yW+VVI A TTORNEYS.

March 3, 1936. M. A. PIXLEY 2,032,951

CLOSURE Filed Dec. 14, 193] 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 9 INVENTOR. Mfi/on ,4. RX/g/ if?! 6 I ATTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 3, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CLOSURE Milton A.Pixley, Columbus, Ohio Application December 14, 1931, Serial No. 580,87618 Claims. (01. 26-20) My invention relates to closures. .It has to do,more particularly, with flexible devices for closing an opening such asthat type of closure which is commonly known as an overhead door.However, there are certain features of this in vention which are notnecessarily limited to use in this connection.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a closure of the typeindicated having means for preventing lateral displacement of theelevating cables by which the closure is operated, during the operationthereof. Another object of my invention is to provide a torsion springfor counter-balancing a closure of the type indicated and means forpreventing buckling or deformation of the torsion spring during theoperation of the closure, due to the increase of the number of turns inthe spring without increasing its length.

Another object of my invention is to provide a closure of the typeindicated which is composed of a plurality of sections and which isprovided with means for causing the lowermost section of the closure toassume a horizontal position above the top of the opening, and tocompletely clear the opening.

Another object of my invention is to provide a closure of the typeindicated having a means for exerting'a braking action on the closureelement as it nears open position, and which will cause it to come to agradual stop without shocks or jars.

Another object of my invention is to provide a closing and opening meansor guide for the upper section of a closure of the type indicated whichwill cause a quick and positive movement of the upper section of theclosure from vertical position towards horizontal position and viceversa, thereby permitting the door to be installed where there is asmall amount of head room above the door, this guide also serving tolock the upper section against lateral movement when it is in closedposition.

For illustrative purposes I have shown my invention as taking the formof a sectional door,

slidable between vertical closed position and horizontal open position.These sections are preferably mainly guided between closed and openposition by means of rollers carried by the door structure at each sideand operating in tracks upon opposite sides of the doorway. These trackscomprise a vertical portion, a horizontal portion, and a substantiallyarcuate portion.

My invention also preferably contemplates the provision of acounter-balancing means which consists of a torsion spring located abovethe top of the doorway, and operably connected to the door structure bymeans of elevating cables. This torsion spring is mounted in surroundingrelation to a shaft on which the cable drums are also mounted. Thesedrums are so mounted on the shaft that when they are rotated in onedirection they will move laterally to one side and when the drums arerotated in the opposite direction they will move laterally to theopposite side, thereby preventing lateral displacement of the cableswhich wind thereon. The torsion spring is so mounted on the shaft thatwhen the torsion of the spring is increased during the operation of thedoor, which also increases the number of turns in the spring, atensional stress is applied to the spring to increase its length, inorder to prevent buckling or deformation. If the spring were confined toits original length, then the additional turns, added to the spring bythe increasing of the torsion, would cause displacement or buckling ofthe spring.

My invention also comprises auxiliary rollers which are mounted on thelowermost section of the door and which operate in auxiliary trackwaysto cause the lower section of the door to move to a horizontal positionabove the doorway.

My invention further comprises a pair of cam members or inclined planedevices which are mounted on the upper corners of the uppermost sectionand which cooperate with pins mounted adjacent the upper edge of thedoorway, in causing the upper section of the door to swing from avertical position towards a horizontal position and vice versa. Thesemembers also serve to lock the upper section of the door against lateraldisplacement when the door is in closed position.

I have shown one form which my invention may take, inthe accompanyingdrawings, wherein similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts, and wherein:

.Figure 1 is a front elevation of a door structure made in accordancewith my invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation partly in section, of the structure shownin Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a detail partly in section, of the counter-balancing elementand the cable drums of my door operating mechanism.

Figure 4 is an enlarged perspective view, partly broken away, of theupper end of my door structure.

Figure 5 is a side view of the upper end of the {it} door structureshowing the lowermost section in horizontal open position.

Figure 6 is a plan View of the main trackway and the auxiliary trackwayof my door structure.

In the drawings, my invention is shown as comprising a trackway locatedat each side of the doorway, each trackway embodying a vertical portionl, a horizontal portion 2 and an intermediate arcuate portion 3. It willbe noted that the horizontal portion of the trackways is disposedentirely above the plane of the top of the doorway and it willsubsequently be seen that the upper section of my door, both in openingand closing, is caused to move with a swing ing movement, as well as asliding movement for a purpose that will be hereinafter explained.

My door preferably comprises a plurality of panels or sections 4 whichare hinged together in any suitable manner as by the hinge element 5. Ateach end of the hinged structure 5, rollers 6 are mounted. These rollersare preferably of the roller bearing type and are preferably mounted onstub shafts 1 which are mounted in the hinge structure 5 in any suitablemanner. These rollersare adapted to operate in the main trackways and toguide the door structure between its different positions.

' The lowermost section 4 of the door is provided with brackets 8 whichare bolted to the lowermost corners thereof. These brackets have stubshafts 9 mounted thereon or formed integrally therewith. On the outerend of each of these stub shafts 9, an auxiliary roller I0 is rotatablymounted. The auxiliary roller I0 is adapted to operate in an auxiliarytrackway which is formed by the outer surface of the main trackway andan angle member II which is mounted on the wall adjacent the maintrackway (Figure 6). Aprojecting member I2 is formed adjacent the-upperend of the angle member II and this member I2 is provided with aninclined lower end l3. The member [2 is adapted to cause the lower edgeof the door to clear the upper end of the doorway, as will behereinafter understood. A plate I4 is also mounted at eachside of thedoorway adjacent its upperend and this plate is preferabpl bolted to theangle member II and to the arcuate portion 3 of the main trackway. Oneach of these plates another angle member I5 is mounted in spacedrelation to the angle member II. An inclined portion I5 is formed onmember l5 and this portion corresponds with the inclined portion I3 ofthe member I2. This additional angle member l5 serves to prevent thelower end of the lowermost section of the door from being deflectedrearwardly to an undesirable extent, as will be'more fully describedhereinafter.

The means for swinging the upper section of the door from verticalposition towards horizontal position and from horizontal positiontowards vertical position, and for locking the upper section of the dooragainst lateral displacement when the door is closed, comprises abracket member l5 which is bolted to the upper corner of the door ateach side thereof. This bracket member [6 is provided with a pair ofprojecting lugs I! having openings formed in their outer ends. An arm i8is adapted to be connected to the bracket member I6, by means of a pin19 passing through a sleeve 20 formed in the upper end thereof andpassing through the openings in the lugs l1. Thus it will be seen thatthe. arm .l8is mounted in such a manner that it will be free tooscillate. The lower end of the arm I8 is provided with a sleeve 2| inwhich is rotatably and slidably mounted a stub shaft 22. A roller 23 ismounted on the outer end of the stub shaft 22 and this roller is adaptedto operate in the main trackway. The bracket member I6 is furtherprovided with a cam member 24 which is preferably formed integrallytherewith. The cam member 24 is provided with an outwardly extendingflange 25 formed at one edge thereof and an outwardly extending flange26 formed at the other edge thereof. The flange 25 comprises a verticalportion 21 and an inclined portion 28. The flange 26 comprises avertical portion 29 and an inclined portion 36.

A pin 3| is mounted adjacent each cam member 24 and is adapted tocooperate therewith, in causing the upper section of the door to swinginto its various positions, as will be fully described hereinafter.These pins 3| are provided with a reduced end portion 32 which passesthrough an opening formed in the angle member l5 and plate M. The outerend of this reduced portion 32 is threaded to receive a nut 33 by whichthe pin is secured on the plate M in such a position I as to cooperatewith the cam member 24.

In the operation of this mechanism for causing the upper section of thedoor to swing into its various positions, assuming that the door is inclosed position, (Figure 4) the door is started on its upward movement.The inclined portion 33 of flange 26 will strike the pin 3| and willcause the upper section of the door to swing towards horizontalposition. This swinging movement will be permitted inasmuch as the armI8 is connected to the uppermost door section in such a manner that itis free to oscillate. After the u permost section reaches horizontalposition, the lower side thereof will rest on the upper edge of arm l8and the rollers 23 which operate in of flange 25 and thiswill preventlateral movement of the upper section, and will keep the upper edge infirm contact with the lintel of the opening.

I have also provided suitable means for counterbalancing the door andfor raising it. This means comprises a torsion spring 34 which ismounted above the doorway in a manner to be now fully described. Thetorsion spring 34 is mounted on a shaft 35 and in surrounding relationthereto. The shaft 35 has keyed on opposite ends thereof, the wide.cable drums 36 and 31. Adjacent the drum 36, the shaft 35 is rotatablymounted in a bearing member 38 which is bolted to the wall structureabove the doorway.

This bearing member 38 comprises a housing 39 provided with an enlargedend 48 and a reduced end 4|. Suitably disposed in the reduced end 41 isa nut 42 which is internally threaded. This nut-is so mounted in thehousing 39 that it will not rotate therein. The threads on the nut 42are adapted to cooperate with the threaded porwhich is adapted to act asabearing for the seen later.

shaft 35 andto relieve the threaded portion of the shaft and the nutfrom most of the weight of the door.

Adjacent the drum 31 is a bearing member 45, provided for the shaft.This bearing member comprises a housing 43 having a ball bearing 41suitably mounted therein, which acts as a bearing for the. other end ofthe shaft. The housing 46 is further provided with an inwardly extendingflange 48. A drum member 49 is mounted in surrounding relation to shaft35in such a manner that it can rotate on such shaft. This drum memberfits within the flange 48 and is held therein by means of a collar 50which is held in place on the outer edge of flange 48, by means ofscrews 50'. The drum member 49 is provided with a series of holes 5|formed in the outer periphery thereof, in circumferentially spacedrelation. The flange 48 is provided with a screw bolt 52 which isadapted to cooperate with the holes 5! in securing the drum 49 in anyadjustedposition.

One end of the spring 34 is passed through an opening 52 in one side ofthe drum 49 and is bent in such a manner that it will be securely heldtherein. The other end of the spring 34 is suitably connected to amember 53 which is also mounted on the shaft 35. The member 53, as willbe seen from Figure 3, is keyed'to this shaft. Thus, as the member 53 iskeyed to shaft 35 and the drum 49 is loosely mounted thereon, it will beobvious that by rotating the drum 49 and securing it in place by meansof screw bolt 52 and openings 5| in said drum, the initial torsion ofthe spring 34 can be adjusted to any desired extent.

A cable 36 is connected to the bracket 8 at the left hand side of thedoor (Figure 1) by means of a connecting member 54 or in any othersuitable manner. The. opposite end of this cable 36 is connected to thedrum 36 in any suitable manner. A cable 31 is connected to the righthand side of the lower section of the door by means of another member 54which is connected .to the bracket 8, in some suitable manner. Theopposite end of this cable is connected to the drum 31, in any suitablemanner. It will be noted that the cable 36' is connected to drum .36adjacent its inner edge and that cable 37' is connected to drum 3'!adjacent its outer edge.

In the operation of the counter-balancing unit and the cooperating drummembers, assuming that the door is in closed position, the spring 34will have a maximum amount of torsion and will also be subjected totensional stresses as will be The door is started in its upwardmovement. During the upward movement of the door, the torsion of spring34 will decrease. Furthermore, it will be understood that during theupward travel of the door, the shaft 35 will rotate in the. directionsof the arrows in Figure 3 and the threaded portion 43 thereof will cooperate with nut 42 in causing the shaft 35 to feed towards the right.This will cause the drums 36 and 31 to move to the right and will allowthe cables 36' and 37' to remain in a perpendicular position, and willprevent lateral movement thereof. Furthermore, it will be readily seenthat when the shaft feeds toward the right, Figure 3, the tension in thespring 34 will also be decreased due to the fact that member 53 will bemoved closer to drum 49. Thus, it will be readily seen that as thetorsion decreases during the raising of the door, the tension of thespring also decreases. Furthermore, by

causing the cable drums to move to the right, the cables can wind on thedrums in a single layer without causing lateral movement of the cable.When the door is lowered into closed position, it will be readily seenthat as the torsion of the spring 34 increases, and the number of turnsin the spring increases. However, the movement of the shaft to the leftwill also cause the spring to be subjected to a tensional force due tothe fact that member 53 will be moved a greater distance from the drum49, thereby extending the spring and preventing buckling or deformationof the spring, which would otherwise be caused by the increase of thenumber of turns therein.

In the operation of the entire door structure, when the door is inclosed position, the different parts will occupy the position shown inFigures 1 to 4, inclusive. The door is started on its upward travel bymanually applied force, and after it reaches a certain position, thecounter-balance will cause the continued upward movement thereof. At theinitiation of this upward movement, the mechanism adjacent the upper endof the door will cause the upper section of the door to swing towards ahorizontal position. The rollers 3 will operate in the main trackw'aysand the rollers i8 will operate in the auxiliary trackways. When thelower section of the door reaches the position shown by dotted lines inFigure 5, the rollers ill will contact with the inclined portion I3 ofmember l2 and this will cause the lower edge of the lowermost section tobe deflected rearwardly in order that it will not contact with thelintel of the opening, as it swings into horizontal position. As thelowermost section swings into a horizontal position, the angle flange l5prevents any further inward movement of roller l6 and causes roller Hito travel vertically, thereby acting as a brake on the moving structureand gradually reducing the inward travel of the door to bring it to agradual stop. The angle member I5 will prevent the deflection of thelowermost section rearwardly, to a greater extent than desired. Theraising operation will be continued until the lowermost section occupiesa horizontal position above the opening, where it completely clears theopening, as shown by full lines in Figure 5.

It will be understood that I have provided a closure element which hasmany highly advantageous features. It will be readily seen that therewill be no lateral displacement of the operating cables of my closureelement, thereby preventing lateral pulls on the closure element and thenecessity of providing a comparatively great amount of space wherein thecables may move laterally. It will also be understood that I haveprovided means for preventing buckling of the torsion spring used tocounter-balance the closure element. It will further be seen that I haveprovided a means for deflecting the upper end of the closure elementquickly towards a horizontal position, or quickly towards a verticalposition, and that I have also provided a means for causing the lowersection of the closure element to completely clear the opening and toassume a horizontal position above the opening. Furthermore, it will beunderstood that I have provided a means for exerting a braking action onthe door as it nears open position and for bringing it to a gradualstop. Many other advantages will be readily apparent.

It will also be understood that my invention is not limited toapplication to the type of closure closure element from verticalposition towards horizontal position and from horizontal positiontowards vertical position, said last-named means comprising a memberwith a cam groove therein mounted on said upper section, and a pinmounted adjacent said upper section and cooperating with said groovedmember.

2. A device for closing an opening comprising a closure element composedof a plurality of sections, trackways, means for guiding said closureelement by said trackways, means for deflecting the upper end of the topsection to and from the lintel of said opening, and for holding it inposition against the lintel when the closure element is in closedposition, said last-named means comprising a member with a cam groovetherein mounted on said top section, and a pin mounted adjacent said topsection and cooperating with said grooved member.

3. A device for closing an opening comprising a closure element composedof a plurality of sections, a main trackway, means on said closureelement for operating in said main trackway, an auxiliary trackway,means on said closure elementfor operating in said auxiliary trackway,the upper section of the door being mounted in such a manner that it mayswing away from said trackways, means other than said trackways forcausing the upper section of said closure element to swing into itsvarious positions, elevating cables for operating said closure element,means for preventing lateral displacement of the elevating cables duringoperation of said 010-- sure element, and a counter-balancing means forsaid closure element.

4. A device for closing an opening comprising a closure element composedof a plurality of sections, trackways, means for guiding said closureelement by said trackways, means for moving said closure element betwenvertical and horizontal positions, means for swinging the upper sectionof said closure element from vertical position towards horizontalposition and from horizontal position towards vertical position, saidlast-named means comprising a grooved member mounted on said uppersection, the groove in said member having a verticalportion and aninclined portion, and a pin mounted adjacent said upper section andcooperating with said grooved member, said pin being disposed in thevertical portion of said groove when the closure element is in closedposition.

5. A device for closing an opening comprising a closure element composedof a plurality of sections, trackways, means for guiding said closureelement by said trackways, means for moving said closure element betweenvertical and horizontal positions, means for swinging the upper sectionof said closure element from vertical position towards horizontalposition and from horizontal position towards vertical position, saidlast-named means comprising a bracket secured to the'upper section, agrooved member on said bracket, a pin mounted adjacent the upper end ofsaid closure and cooperating with said grooved member, a lever pivotallymounted on said bracket, said lever having a, roller mounted thereonandadapted to operate in said trackways.

6. A device for closing an opening comprising a slidable structure,means for guiding said slid able structure, elevating cables foroperating said slidable structure, and means for preventing lateraldisplacement of said elevating cables during the operation of saidclosure element, said last-named means comprising cable drums on whichsaid cables are adapted to wind and which are moved laterally in onedirection when the slidable structure is raised and in the oppositedirection when the slidable structure is lowered.

7. A device for closing an opening comprising a slidable structure,means for guiding said slidable structure, elevating cables ioroperating said slidable structure, and means for preventing lateraldisplacement of said elevating cables during the operation of saidclosure element, said lastnamed means comprising cable drums which aremounted on a shaft, means for causing said shaft to move axially in onedirection when the slidable structure is raised and in the oppositedirection when the slidable structure is lowered, a torsion spring, saidtorsion spring being so mounted that movement of said shaft in onedirection will cause said spring to be extended, while movement of saidshaft in the opposite direction will cause said spring to be compressed.

8. In a device of the type described, a closure structure, means foroperating said closure struc ture, said means comprising elevatingcables cohnected to said structure, said elevating cables being adaptedto wind on drums, said drums being mounted on a rotatable shaft, atorsion spring mounted in such a manner that turning of the shaft willincrease or decrease the torsion thereof, means for moving said shaftaxially in one direction when it is rotated in a certain direction andaxially in an opposite direction when it is rotated in a reversedirection so that said drums will be moved laterally in one directionwhen the cables are winding thereon and in a reverse direc'-- tion whenthe cables are unwinding therefrom, axial movement of said shaft beingalso adapted to cause said spring to be extended as the torsion thereofis increased and to cause said spring to be compressed as the torsionthereof is decreased.

9. In a device of the type described a closure structure, means foroperating said closure struc ture, said means comprising elevatingcables connected to said structure, said elevating cables being adaptedto wind upon drums, a torsion spring operably connected to said drums,the torsion of said spring being increased or de' creased upon turningof said drums, means for moving said drums laterally in one directionwhen said drums are turned in a certain direction and laterally in anopposite direction when the drums are turned in a reverse direction,lateral movement of said drums being also adapted to cause said springto be extended as the torsion thereof is increased and to cause saidspring to be compressed as the torsion thereof is decreased.

10. In a closure structure of the type described, means for operatingsaid structure, said means comprising a cable adapted to wind on a drum,said drum being comparatively wide and of such a type that the cable maywind thereon in a single layer, and means for preventing lateral pullson said cable at all times during the winding of the cable on the drumand the unwinding thereof, said means comprising mechanism for causinglateral movement of said drum;

11. In a closure structure of the type described, means for operatingsaid structure, said means comprising a cable adapted to wind on a drum,said drum being of considerable width so that the cable may wind thereonwith the turns thereof arranged side by side, and means for preventinglateral pulls on said cable during the winding thereof on the drum andthe unwinding thereof.

12. In a device of the type described, a closure structure, means foroperating said closure structure, said means comprising flexible membersadapted to wind on drum members, a torsion spring operably connected tosaid drum members, the torsion of said spring being increased ordecreased upon turning of said drum members, and means for causing saidspring to be lengthened as the torsion thereof is increased and to causesaid spring to be shortened as the torsion thereof is decreased.

13. In a device of the type described, a closure structure, means foroperating said closure structure, said means comprising flexible membersadapted to wind on drum members, a torsion spring operably connected tosaid drum members, means for adjusting the initial torsion of saidspring, the torsion of said spring being increased or decreased uponturning of said drum members, and means for causing said spring to belengthened as the torsion thereof is increased and to cause said springto be shortened as the torsion thereof is decreased.

14. In a device for closing an opening, a counterbalance unit, saidcounterbalance unit comprising a torsion spring, said torsion springbeing of such a type that its torsional effect will increase anddecrease during operation of said closure device, and means forpreventing buckling of said spring during operation of said closure,said means comprising mechanism for causing said spring to be lengthenedas the torsion thereof is increased and to be shortened as the torsionthereof is decreased.

15. A device for closing an opening comprising a slidable structure,main trackways for guiding said structure between vertical andhorizontal positions, auxiliary trackways extending vertically above thelintel of said opening, rollers mounted on'said' slidable structure foroperating in said main trackways, rollers mounted on said slidablestructure for operating in said auxiliary trackways, and an inclinedplane member on said auxiliary trackways disposed adjacent the lintel ofsaid opening and lying in the path of travel of the rollers which travelin the auxiliary trackways whereby the lowermost edge of said slidablestructure will be caused to clear the lintel of the opening as saidstructure swings into a horizontal position.

16. A counterbalancing device comprising an operating shaft rotatablymounted, a torsion spring disposed in surrounding relation to said shaftand having one end connected to said shaft and its opposite endconnected to an independent member, the torsion of said spring beingincreased upon rotation of said shaft in one direction and decreasedupon rotation of said shaft in an opposite direction, and means forcausing said shaft ,1

automatically to feed axially in one direction when rotated in onedirection and axially in the other direction when rotated in the otherdirection so that said spring will be lengthened and shortened as thetorsion thereof is increased or decreased, respectively.

17. In combination, a rotatable shaft, a counterbalancing means forresisting rotation of said shaft in one direction and for aidingrotation in an opposite direction, and means for causing said shaft tofeed axially in one direction when rotated in one direction and to feedaxially in an opposite direction when rotated in an opposite direction.

18. A device for closing an opening comprising a sectional closureelement, means for guiding MILTON A. PIXLEY.

